Exposure to maternal hormones has additional effects on female infants:
- They can make the outside of the vagina (i.e. the "labia majora" and the "clitoris") a little swollen and prominent
- Can cause a thick, milky discharge in the vagina
- Most dramatically, at 2 or 3 days of age, there may be a little bit of bleeding from the vagina; this is perfectly normal and is caused by the withdrawal of the hormones the infant was exposed to in the womb. You can reassure parents that it will be her first and last menstrual period for another decade or so.